Robinson Cano returns to Mariners' lineup at DH

(8/1/15) Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano returned to the starting lineup on Saturday, but he'll take at least another day to return to the field.

Cano has missed the last three games with a strained abdominal muscle. He's in the lineup at designated hitter on Saturday.

Ketel Marte gets the start at second base for the second straight day and second time this season.

Mariners 2B Robinson Cano still out with abdominal strain

by Jason Lempert | Staff Writer

(7/31/15) As expected, Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano remains out of the starting lineup on Friday. Cano is dealing with a strained abdominal muscle, and will miss his third straight game.

Rookie Ketel Marte will make his big-league debut on Friday, as he will fill in at second base for Cano.

Cano is expected to be sidelined until early next week.

Mariners 2B Robinson Cano sidelined again Thursday

by Marty Gitlin | CBSSports.com

(7/30/15) An abdominal strain has Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano out of the lineup again Thursday night at Minnesota.

Cano, who sat Wednesday as well, will likely need to serve as a designated hitter upon his return to get back in action.

Abdomen strain has Mariners 2B Robinson Cano sidelined

by Marty Gitlin | CBSSports.com

(7/29/15) Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano is dealing with an abdomen strain that resulted Wednesday in his first day off since June 18. Results of the MRI showed that he has a grade 1 strain, and the team hopes that he may be able to return to a DH-only role in five or six days, per 710-AM.

"He'll get a couple days off, maybe DH after that, and probably five or six days later he should be able to resume playing [second base]," Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said after Wednesday afternoon's 8-2 loss to Arizona, per MLB.com.

Cano lost his eight-game hitting streak Tuesday, but still has 13 hits in his last 32 at-bats with three of the 11 home runs he has slugged this season.

"He was trying to make a play a couple of days ago and he felt it," McClendon said. "It's gotten a little worse."

Mariners 2B Robinson Cano continues comeback with 3 RBIs

by Elliott Smith | Staff Writer

(7/25/15)Robinson Cano continues to produce for the Mariners, turning around a season in which he was mired in a deep slump, driving in three runs in Seattle's loss to Toronto on Saturday.

The second baseman hammered his 10th home run of the season in the fourth inning to give Seattle a 6-3 advantage. Cano also walked once and scored twice.

Over his last 10 games, Cano has 14 hits, 11 runs, 11 RBIs and four home runs to lift his average from .249 to .262.

04/11/2015 20:30Cruz hits 1st Mariners' homer in 5-4, 11-inning win over A's
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Nelson Cruz hit his first home run for Seattle and Brad Miller threw out a runner at the plate in the 10th inning and doubled in the go-ahead run in the 11th, lifting the Seattle Mariners over the Oakland Athletics 5-4 Saturday.

04/11/2015 01:53Pomeranz pitches A's past Mariners 12-0
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) At this rate, Athletics manager Bob Melvin is going to have a hard time leaving Mark Canha's name out of the lineup, no matter the matchup.

2014 summary: With him leaving the friendly dimensions of Yankee Stadium, with its short porch in right field, for the notoriously pitcher-friendly Safeco Field last offseason, nobody really knew how Robinson Cano would fare. Turns out his power numbers decreased all right, but not so much because of his home park, where he hit nine of his 14 home runs. Of course, he was still an amazing hitter all around, batting over .300 for the sixth straight season, and gave the Mariners lineup some needed punch. Still, the drop in homers resulted in him finishing fifth among second basemen in both Head-to-Head points and Rotisserie leagues.

Playing time status: The heart and soul of the Mariners lineup, Cano's playing time is assured and, having played at least 157 games in eight consecutive seasons, he's not a major injury risk even as he enters what are typically the twilight years for a middle infielder.

2015 outlook: So was Cano's decline in power age-related or just one of those things? Considering 12 of his 14 home runs came in the final four months, the latter seems more likely. Playing half his games at Safeco Field, he's a long shot to hit 30 home runs again, but the likelihood of 20 with a potentially league-leading batting average still puts him in the discussion for the top second baseman in Fantasy, making him a borderline first-round pick.
(Updated 12/23/14)